﻿ I had a completely different post planned for today until I read some of my faves this morning, Kate the Centsational Girl and The Nester's posts about risk taking. This got the old noggin' spinning in a completely different direction.

Many of you may or may not know that I started my own interior decorating business less than a year ago. I had always wanted to but didn't think I had the right credentials or the business know how.

I did not go to school for interior decorating/design. Growing up I was always decorating and rearranging my bedroom, this should have been my clue... Duh.

As a nieve 18 year old making huge life decisions when entering college, I didn't even consider interior design thinking I was going to make big bucks as a business professional.

It wasn't until after graduation and becoming a homeowner for the first time that I realized my true calling was decorating. I absolutely LOVED it. I considered it a new hobby that I couldn't get enough of. To curb the expense I shopped at TJ Maxx, Tuesday Mornings, Target, etc.

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image via google

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When people came in our home for the first time they were always very complimentary, sometimes shocked at the nice decor. A few people called me Martha (as in the Martha Stewart... aww shucks :).

image via Martha Stewart Show

When we put our houses on the market over the years as we've moved several realtors thought our homes had been professionally decorated. No, just little old me...

Friends started asking me to help decorating their homes and started telling me I should start a business...who, me?!

All of these wonderful compliments slowly built my confidence. Maybe I could do this as a career....

When we had our first baby I quit my job to stay home as we had planned (quite a risk in itself!). Being a mom was definitely my first calling just ahead of decorating. ﻿

﻿After our second son turned 2 and years of thinking about starting a business I had had enough of the "what ifs" in my head... you know, What if no one hires me? What if people don't like my style? What if people question my credentials? What if I fail?.

“Security is mostly a superstition. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.”

– Helen Keller

I finally decided what do I have to lose? The important stuff was covered... thankfully, my husband has great job security and benefits so I didn't have to provide benefits or a steady income. I have family around to watch my babes if I needed to see a client during the day.

Could I fail?

Yes.

Did it really matter if I failed?

No. (besides my pride taking a hit)

So, I followed a dream.

I made a plan (kind of), gave myself a name (actually, my dad came up with it... thanks dad! isn't he creative?!) I made a website for myself using a free service (which was pretty easy for a non-techy girl like me once I got the hang of it). And then I just put myself out there (told my friends and family and posted on Facebook... free advertising!)

And, amazingly... someone hired me. It was a Facebook friend from a mom's church group I had been a part of a few years ago.

Shortly after that, someone was reading my friend's blog, she saw me as a follower of my friend and clicked on my picture, intrigued by my business name, she then became my first client that I didn't previously know. This was SUPER exciting!! Someone I had never met hired me based off my blog pictures alone!

Since then, I have steadily had clients contact me. I haven't spent a dime on advertising. It's purely been word of mouth.